Improved furnace for generating steam-gas



- as will be explained, and in such manner as PATENE @Enron J. MILTONsANDEns, or NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPRVED FURN-AGE IEGR GENE-RATING- STEAM-GAS.

,S'pcc'ijicat'ion form'inlyll-iurtinii Letters Patent No. 92,212, datedJ'n-Zy 6,1869.

T0 all whom it may concern y Be it known that I, J. MILTON SANDERS, ofthe city, county, andmState of New York, have invented certainnew anduseful Improvements in Steam-Gas Furnaces; and I vdo hereby declare thefollowing to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same,reference bein g4 had to the accompanying drawings, making a part ofthis specification', in which-` Figure l represents a vertical sectionthrough a furnace which I have found to answer a good purpose, butwhich, of course, may be modified without changing the generalcharacteristics of the invention. i

The object ot' my invention is l,to decompose steam by passing itthrough ignited'coke, charcoal, or other suitable forni of carbon,.so asto save its hydrogen and. oxygenlfor after use,

to make the operation economical and easily controlled 5 and lMy'invention consists in combining, with a fire-chamber or furnace, airand steam inlets, introduced through a tight chamber, and gasoutlets,controlled by stop-cocks or cut-offs, so that the ignition ofthecarbonf'uel may be kept up, or brought up, after it has been reduced bythe passage of the steam into or ithrough it, and the steam shut off, orthe steam ,iet on and the draft shut od, while a corresponding closn gor opening of the gas escapes or avenues is made, as will be explained.

To enable others skilled in th art to make and use my invention, I willproceed to describe the same with reference tothe drawings.

The furnace or fire-box A may be of such' varied dimensions ascircumstatnces may require, and may be made of boiler-iron and linedwith lire-clay, bricks, or ether suitable material, as shown at a a. Ori ,may be built entirely of bricks or any other material. A The grate bis set so as to leave a c` amber, G, between it and the bottom c of theyfurnafcevhich chamber, though accessible through a door, F, for thepurpose of cleaning it'ont', istight or close: On the top of the furnace`there is van opening, d, controlled by a tight-hinting cover or cutoff,D, which opening Iiterm algas-out let, though it may be used as an,inlet for suppl ying the coke, charcoal, on ,at erlform of carbon tothe fire box or chfainb. r. Near the top ci the furnace is an exit-pipe,iE, cntrollod by a cock, c, through which pipe the hydrogen and carboniooxide, made by the decomposition of the steam passing through theignited carbon, may pass-into any suitable gasometer or receiver.

Into the chamber G isv introduced a pipe, B, leading from afau-blowen'bellows, or other draft-supply, and controlled by a cock, f..Into the same chamber is also introduced a pipe, C, controlled by acock, g, which pipe leads from a steam generator or superheater, and isdesigned for admitting the steam into or shutting it off from the closechamber G.

The furnace or iire-chamber having'been charged with the coke, charcoal,or other suitable form of carbon, the latter is blown-up to red. heat byopening the passage from the blower through B, as also opening the ue orpassage through d, to make a suitable draft. As soon as the carbon hasreached the temperature of ignition, the flue d is closed by its coverD, and likewise the passage or draft through the pipe B. The openingthrough the pipe E to the gasometer or other receiver and holder isdisclosed, and steam is allowed to flow through the pipe C into thebottom of' the furnace or chamber G.

The steam in passing through the ignited'.I f,

carbon becomes decomposed, its oxygen com;` bining with a portion ot'the carbon and form-Y.'

ing a carbonic-oxidc gas, and its hydrogenQ-I passes through intact tothe gasometcr. This y flow of steam, andconsequent generation of theabove-named gases, must be continued until the carbon falls below thepoint of ignition, when the steam must be cut off and the pipe B openedto allow the blast or draft to come in and bring the carbon again up toa red heat. Before, however, the blast or draft is let on, the cover I)must be removed from the flue d to allow the gas inclosed in the furnaceto escape, which it will instantly do in virtue of its light specificgravity, and the cock c in the pipe E is also closed, to prevent the Ygas in the gasometer escaping. The air from or superheated, bypreference) let on, and the gases are again generated. Thus theStearngas is obtained by alternately tannin g the car-l bun up toignition by a blast or draft, and geuerat-ing gas until the fall oftemperature of the l colora` natin g property, but burns with aflame ofablue F0 render this steam-gas luminous, it may be ltassed through acarbureter containl ing some light hydrocarbon, where it will combineWit l su' cient of the hydrocarbon to become hi ly illuminating. Or thesteam-gas as it com s hot from the furnace may be passed through ahydrocarbon, in which case the hydrocarbon need not be' of so light aspecific gravity.' Or, the crude petroleum may be caused tg, ow into thefurnace simultaneously with the decomposition of the steam, Where thegas derived from the latter will combine with the petroleum-vapor,forming the illumi- Dating-gas in question. By either of these methodsthe gas combines chemically with the hydrocarbons, forming anilluminating-gas of great brilliancy, and more permanentthan coal, gas,the steam-gases being inflammable ones and therefore capable of holdingthe h ydrocarbon with an affinity stronger than that with which coal-gasholds its illuminating material.

.Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim therein as new,and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

Au apparatus for generating steamgas,con sisting of a furnace, air andsteam inlets introduced through a close chamber under said furnace, andgas-outlets controlled by stop cocks or cut-os, and the whole arrangedto operate as herein described, and for the purposes set forth.

J. MILTON SANDERS.

Witnesses:

GEO. H. KEiTH, CHAS. A. SMITH.

